A scene of the occult played out last night as police officers dragged away satanists from a church in Norwich as part of filming for an upcoming movie.

Shooting for The Power, a psychological horror which has been filmed in Norfolk by The Cult Films Company, ran well into the night yesterday as St Mary's Plain was closed off for the evening.

Directed by Paul Hills, the movie has taken in locations including the old hospital chapel at Fellowes Plain and Dereham hospital.

And last night was the turn of nearly 30 extras, with some playing cult members and others policemen, to have their turn alongside the lead roles as they disrupted an occult meeting at the church.

Ian Dickinson, 47, plays Malcolm, a police chief inspector who is also one of the leading figures in the cult. He said that actors playing members of the cult currently live in one house in Norwich's Golden Triangle, while those who did not, live in another, typifying the director's unique approach that also encouraged improvisation.

'It's been fantastic working on the film, and on the first day in which I had to shoot a harrowing scene with the leading actress, the first time I met her was for the filming.

'There are no rehearsals, you jump straight into it, and at first it feels like a restriction but then you realise it's actually a springboard and gives you a lot of freedom.'

Mr Dickinson, who is currently living in Berlin, was also full of praise for Norfolk and those from the area who had helped out with the shoot.

'It's great being in Norfolk and I love Norwich. I wasn't really expecting it when I came because I didn't know much about the area and hadn't been before but I was surprised at how beautiful it is here.

'I've grown up and lived in pubs, and the place has also got great, old, proper pubs, and all the extras have been fantastic. Just this weekend we were shooting a scene near Norwich Cathedral and it was raining and it was muddy but they stuck around like real troopers.

'Plus we've got a lot of people working on the film who are from the area and that's been great because it's given us a real insight into the area.'

One of those is Adrian Florin Ardelean, a 20-year-old student studying film and moving image production at Norwich University College of the Arts.

Recommended to the film crew, he flew through an interview in June and has been working on set as a second assistant director ever since.

'I was really excited when I got the interview and made a special effort with my CV, which they seemed to like,' he said.

'I started that day with the job of organising 200 extras for a scene. It's been a lot of pressure but I've enjoyed it and the experience will help me make my short films better.'

Director Paul Hills is working with producer Mark Forstater, who was involved with Monty Python and the Holy Grail.